Stretching form for fur garments and the like



F. KATONA 3,399,815

STRETGHING FORM FOR FUR GARMENTS AND THE LIKE Sept. 3, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet Filed Sept. 28, 1965 INVENTOR Fem/K 14 470401 BY W W Zak. ATTORNEYS F. KATONA 3,399,815

STRETCHING FORM FOR FUR GARMENTS AND THE LIKE Sept. 3, 1968 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 28, 1965 INVENTOR FgA/x Mroun ATTORNEY$ United States Patent 3,399,815 STRETCHING FORM FOR FUR GARMENTS AND THE LIKE Frank Katona, 28 Linden Road, Sylvan Glen, M.C.R., Bordentown, NJ. 08505 Filed Sept. 28, 1965, Ser. No. 490,870 9 Claims. (Cl. 22368) This invention relates generally to garment forms, and more particularly has reference to a stretching form designed for use by the fur industry, especially in the fitting of fur garments to the particular physical characteristics of the purchaser.

By way of background, it may be observed that in the fitting of fur garments, many problems are encountered, which heretofore have been solved in a relatively laborious, expensive fashion.

In the great majority of instances, a fitting problem has been conventionally met only by such practices as opening up entire portions of the fur garments to make necessary alterations, after which the garments are re-sewed. While such practices may not, and quite possibly do not, present serious problems when alterations are being made in apparel constructed of conventional fabrics, the requirement of making the alterations in fur produces great difficulties. A typical instance showing the dilficulty of making an alteration in a fur garment is worthy of note in this regard. If, for example, the purchaser has a prominently rounded back, the adjustment of the garment to fit the purchaser would necessitate, first, the opening of the upper back portion of the garment in its entirety. The worker would in such instance start with the lining, proceeding then to undo the seams at the back of the neckline, the shoulder line, and the darts. The sleeve seams would have to be opened from the shoulder down to the side seams of the body. Then, the worker, conventionally, copies a pattern and necessary alterations are made therefrom, such as new darts and allowance for a longer back. The necessary pieces of fur are then matched, sewed on, pressed, and the top of the back is re-cut according to the new pattern. Tape is applied along the edges and the top back portion of the garment is then re-sewed.

As will be obvious, this is a relatively expensive, timeconsuming, and laborious operation. It is, however, typical of the procedures now employed.

The broad object of the present invention is to obviate the difliculties heretofore experienced in making alterations of the various types normally encountered, by means of a stretching form for fur garments which is designed in a novel manner to permit the performance of the alteration work in less time, and without the use of costly materials.

Among more specific objects of the invention are the following:

First, to provide a stretching form as described which will permit the alteration work to be done by relatively unskilled employees, as distinguished from the present requirement of utilizing skilled craftsmen to perform such work;

Second, to provide a stretching form as described which will be designed to permit a relatively wide range of both preliminary and final adjustment of the component parts of the form in respect to one another;

Third, to provide a stretching form of the character stated that will be strong, durable, and well adapted for its intended purpose;

Fourth, to so design the stretching form as to permit component portions thereof to be removed bodily, thus to allow the substitution of other components in a manner that will increase substantially the versatility of the form in alteration work involving different types of garments, as well as different basic garment sizes;

Fifth, to provide a stretching form of the type stated that will include novel means for effecting, in cooperation with one another, adjustments both in horizontal and vertical directions, whereby to still further increase the versatility of the form in effecting alterations of different kinds.

Summarized briefly, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention there is provided a vertical standard, on which a body part and a plate assembly are supported. The body part is disposed above and in spaced relation to the plate assembly, and in the illustrated embodiment is in the general simulation of the torso and waist of the human trunk. The body part is completely removable from the standard if desired, to permit the substitution of a different body part, possibly of different length according to the nature of the garment to be worked on.

In any event, the body part, when in position upon the form, is left stationary in the illustrated embodiment of the invention. This is accomplished by the use of one or more set collars, which locate the body part upon the standard and hold it in the desired location.

The plate assembly includes a plurality of relatively movable parts, all arranged in a generally horizontal plane. Among these is a center plate, which moves up wardly and downwardly by reason of being threaded-1y engaged with a sleeve manually rotatable upon the standard. Carried by the center plate are outer plates, which are laterally adjustable toward and away from each other so as to provide for expansion of the center plate assembly in a plane normal to the length of the standard, that is, normal to the direction in which the plate assembly is itself bodily adjustable toward and away from the body part of the device. Means is provided, extending between the body part and the plate assembly, to prevent relative rotation of the same during the various adjustments effected in the normal operation of the stretching form. The sleeve itself is bodily adjustable longitudinally of the standard, and it will thus be seen that by reason of the preliminary, adjusted location of the sleeve and body part, a wide range of preliminary adjustments can be made, in each of which final adjustments of the plate assembly toward and away from the body part can be produced.

Also in accordance with the invention, a front plate is provided, connected to the plate assembly and extending in overlapping relation to the body part, so as to provide a backing surface for the front of the garment which will extend the full distance between the body part and the plate assembly regardless of the positions to which the plate assembly may be moved toward and away from the body part.

Other objects will appear from the following description, the claims appended thereto, and from the annexed drawings, in which like reference characters designate like parts throughout the several views, and wherein:

FIG. 1 is a front elevational view of a stretching form in accordance with the present invention, portions being broken away and other portions being shown in section;

FIG. 2 is a side elevational view in which portions have been broken away;

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section substantially on line 33 of FIG. 1, showing the plate assembly in its closed condition;

FIG. 4 is a fragmentary view on the same cutting plane as FIG. 3, in which the plate assembly has been adjustably expanded;

FIG. 5 is a horizontal sectional view substantially on line 55 of FIG. 1;

FIG. 6 is a vertical sectional view through the plates assembly, substantially on line 66 of FIG 1; and

FIG. 7 is an enlarged, detail sectional view substantially on line 7-7 of FIG. 1, showing the mounting of the front plate.

Referring to the drawing in detail, in the illustrated embodiment of the invention I provide a vertically elongated standard generally designated 10 including a straight vertical post 12 the lower end of which is fixedly secured in any suitable manner to a base generally designated 14 having radial arms 16 extending outwardly from the lower end of the post and adapted to support the post upon the floor in a stable fashion when the deviceis in use.

Carried by the lower portion of the standard is a sleeve assembly generally designated 18 including an elongated sleeve 20 having external threads from end to end thereof. Sleeve 20 is freely rotatable upon the post 12, and is adapted to be bodily adjusted to selected positions longitudinally of the post through the provsion of lower and upper set collars 22, 24 respectively in which are threaded kurled set screws 26, 28. The set collars are disposed at opposite ends of the sleeve 20, and it will be understood that by backing off the set screws 26, 28, the set collars can be adjusted to any desired location longitudinally of the post 12. In this way, the sleeve 20 can be adjusted upwardly or downwardly, and in each position to which it is so adjusted, it will be retained by the set collars, and they will be freely rotatable, by a user, upon the post 12.

Receiving the lower end of sleeve 20 is a relatively short tube 30, which is secured to the sleeve for rotation therewith, through the provision of set screw 32. Covering the tube is a cover 34 of soft rubber or the like, fric tionally or otherwise engaged with the sleeve 20 for rotation therewith. The rubber-covered tube 30 is adapted to be gripped by the hand of a user, to facilitate rotation of the sleeve 20 during use of the device.

A plate assembly generally designated 36 lies in a horizontal plane, and. includes an inner plate means 38 the main component of which is a center plate 40. Center plate 40 has a smooth-walled opening 42 through which the sleeve 20 extends. A bottom plate 44 of circular configuration is smaller in area than the center plate, and is provided with an internally threaded nipple 46 aligned with the opening 42. Bottom plate 44 is fixedly secured to the underside of the center plate 40 by means of angularly spaced screws 48.

With nipple 46 threadedly engaged with the sleeve 20, the inner plate assembly is thus caused to move upwardly and downwardly along the length of the sleeve, responsive to rotation of the sleeve, assuming of course that the inner plate assembly is itself held against rotatable movement.

The plate assembly 36 also includes an outer plate means generally designated 50. This comprises a C- shaped front plate element 52, disposed in confronting relation to a C-shaped rear plate element 54, said plate elements embracing the center plate in closely spaced relation thereto as shown in FIG. 5, in the closed condition of the plate assembly 36. Elements 52, 54 are secured to front and rear cover plates 56, 58 respectively by means of screws 60. The cover plates overlie the front and rear portions of the center plate 40, thus supporting the elements 52, 54 in a plane common to that of the center plate.

Formed in the cover plates 56, 58 are straight, confronting slots 62. In a preferred embodiment of the invention, I provide a pair of slots 62 in each of the cover plates, with each slot of a pair receiving a stud 64 extending upwardly through an opening provided therefor in the center plate. Referring to FIG. 5, it will be observed that four studs are utilized, said studs being rectangularly spaced and projecting upwardly through smooth-walled openings disposed in the respective corner portions of the center plate. The heads of the studs engage the bottom surface of the center plate.

Wing nuts 66 are threaded upon the upwardly projecting portions of the studs. Thus, it will be seen that by backing off the wing nuts 66, one loosens the cover plates, permitting them to be moved away from one another from their fully closed positions shown in FIG. 3 to any of various selected open positions such as that shown in FIG. 4. When the cover plates are moved away from each other in this manner, the plate elements 52, 54 are of course correspondingly moved, being fixedly connected to the cover plates. I

By reason of this arrangement, the plate assembly 36 is caused to be expandable in its own plane, that is, the plate assembly can be expanded in a fore-and-aft direction, laterally outwardly from the standard. This adjustable expansion of the plate assembly is in a direction, thus, perpendicular to the direction of adjustment of the plate assembly 36 considered as an entirety, said assembly 36 being adjustable vertically toward and away from the body part 68 of the device.

When the cover plates have been adjusted outwardly to the desired extent, the wing nuts 66 are threaded thereagainst, so as to lock the same in the selected position of adjustment.

The body part 68 of the device includes a side wall portion 70 which in the illustrated example roughly simulates the torso and waist of the human trunk. Body part 68 further includes botton and top plates 72, 74 having bottom and top clearance openings 76, 78 resepectively for the post 12. A set collar 80 is disposed below the bottom plate 72, and is secured fixedly to the post 12 in selected positions of vertical adjustment. Set collar 80 thus retains the body part in a selected location along the length of the post 12. In this way, preliminary adjustments can be made of the body part and sleeve assembly, whereby they can be bodily adjusted along the a length of the post 12 in respect to each other. After said preliminary adjustments have been made, the sleeve assembly and the body part would normally be left in their selected positions of adjustment. Thereafter, final adjustments during regular use of the device are produced by upward and downward movement of the plate assembly 36, toward and away from the body part. This movement results, as previously described, from manual rotation of the sleeve 20, which causes the upward and downward movement of the plate assembly 36.

I provide, also, a cap 82 having a set screw 84 engaging post 12. Cap 82 is mounted upon the upwardly projecting end of the post, above the upper extremity of body part 68.

Should one desire to substitute a different body part for that shown, it is merely necesary that the cap be removed, after which the body part 68 is lifted off the post, and the desired substitution made. This is desirable to permit the device to be used with various types of fur garments, and also, quite possibly, with various basic sizes of said garments.

I provide, additionally, an anti-rotation means generally designated 86, designed to hold the body part 68 and plate assembly 36 against relative rotation. To this end, the means 86 includes a vertically extending bar 88 laterally spaced from an disposed in parallel relation to the standard 10. Bar 88 extends through a clearanceopening 90 of the center plate 40, so as to mount the bar slidably in the plate assembly. At its upper end, bar 88 is secured to a mounting plate 92 having a centrally disposed nipple in which the bar. is secured. Angularly spaced screws 94 secure mounting plate 92 to the bottom surface of the bottom plate 72 of the body part 68.

Also included in the invention is afront plate 96 of generally rectangular form. Front plate 96, at its lower end, is adhesively or otherwise fixedly secured to pins 98, which for this purpose have forwardly and upwardly opening shouldered recesses 100. Pins 98 have pointed lower ends removably engaged in openings 102 of the front plate element 52.

By reason of this arrangement, the front plate can be removed from the plate assembly 36, thus to permit substitution of a different plate, perhaps of shorter length or of different width. In any event, as will be noted the front plate is connected to the plate assembly so as to be movable upwardly and downwardly therewith during the use of the device. The front plate, in each position to which the plate assembly is vertically adjusted, will be disposed in overlapping relation to and in close proximity to the front surface of the body part 68. When the above-mentioned, adjustable expansion of the plate assembly is effected, the front plate will be moved forwardly from the body part with its associated front plate element 52, should said element be moved forwardly and away from the standard.

I may, in this connection, provide any of a wide variety of outer configurations in the plate assembly 36. This would be achieved by forming the front and rear plate elements 52, 54 to selected dimensions and shapes. For example, the rear plate element 54 can, instead of having a straight back edge as shown, have a wavy or undulating edge, corresponding generally to an undulant form built into the lower back portion of some fur coats. Further, the sides of the plate assembly, instead of being parallel as shown, could converge forwardly. All of these various outer configurations of the plate assembly would depend upon the particular type of fur garment on which the work is performed, and since the shapes of the fur garments vary widely in this respect, it is believed sufficient to note that the plate assembly would be shaped correspondingly, without requirement of special illustration of all the various outer configurations that could be imparted to said plate assembly.

The construction which I have illustrated and described facilitates the substitution of one plate assembly for another, since one need only remove the several wing nuts, after which the front and rear plate elements 52, 54, with their associated cover plates, can be bodily removed from the center plate, for substitution of different front and rear plate elements, together with their associated cover plates.

In any event, in use of the device, let it be assumed by way of example that a fur garment is being fitted to a woman with a prominently rounded back, as discussed in the background information preceding the detailed description of the invention. The conventional method as now practiced has already been described herein.

In use of the invention, the garment is first draped about the body part 68. Then, plate assembly 36 is adjusted by rotation of the sleeve 20 to a position in which the bottom of the garment is substantially in registration with the bottom surfaces of the plate elements 52, 54.

As a next step, the worker would mark, as for example with a white chalk, the periphery of the plate assembly 36 to show the length of the garment. The reason for the white chalk mark, extending as a datum line wholly about the periphery of the plate assembly 36, is to show how the bottom of the garment should hang after the adjustments or alterations therein are completed.

As a next step, one removes the garment from the body part 68, and proceeds to approximate the configuration of the rounded back of the purchaser, by pinning pads, not shown, to the body part. In practice, it has been found that conventional shoulder pads serve this purpose well.

As a next step, one replaces the garment on the body part, and checks to determine how the bottom of the garment now corresponds with the chalk line previously placed upon the periphery of the plate assembly 36. If, for example, the back of the garment is one-half inch above the chalk line, it is immediately apparent that the back must be one-half inch longer. The front panels of the garment are now pinned, in closed condition, to the body part 68, and the bottom portions of said front panels are similarly pinned to the front edge of the front plate element 52 at the chalk line, thereby holding the front panels in the proper place while the back of the garment is being stretched. The plate assembly 36 is now elevated, in the typical work situation described, one-half inch to allow the operator to pin the bottom of the back portion of the garment to the back edge of the rear plate element 54, along the chalk line previously made. The next step is to spray or apply water or glazing fluid onto the entire back of the garment. Enough liquid is so applied as to cause some dampness to penetrate the fur to the leather side of the garment. Then, one turns the sleeve 20 in the proper direction until the garment is pulled down the necessary one-half inch at the back. The entire back portion of the garment can then be re-sprayed if necessary. It has been found that the garment should then be left upon the form for a predetermined number of hours, as for example overnight, before being removed. When stretched in a dampened condition in the manner described, the adjustment is completed, all without any opening of the garment, addition of fur, re-sewing, or other laborious, expensive, and time-consuming operations now required in a similar situation.

The invention can also be used if, for example, the wearer has a hump in her back at one side. In this instance, one side portion of the garment might have to be stretched at the back, while the other side of the back part of the garment might be left unchanged. Similarly, it may be necessary to stretch the front of the garment, as for example when the wearer is large-bosomed. In such an instance, the garment tends to be pulled upwardly, and accordingly, the device is used to stretch the garment at the front thereof, so as to compensate for this characteristic.

The device is also usable to advantage in instances in which it has been found that the garment was made with faulty workmanship. For example, the garment may be improperly sewed, the lining may be improperly in stalled, or the bottom of the garment may be uneven. Further, older and crushed garments can be reblocked to enhance their beauty. Numerous additional adjustments can also be accomplished with little effort on the part of the craftsman, and by the use of workers of lower skills and experience.

The front plate, it should be noted, is designed to extend across the gap between the body part 68 and the plate assembly, in selected positions of relative adjustment of said body part and assembly 36. The front plate, when so extended, provides an area to which the front panels of the garments may be pinned below the body part. The front plate in some instances may not be needed, as for example when the plate assembly is in its uppermost position. In these circumstances, the front plate can be removed bodily. Of course, any of various shapes and sizes of front plates can be provided as desired.

It is believed apparent that the invention is not necessarily confined to the specific use or uses thereof described above, since it may be utilized for any purpose to which it may be suited. Nor is the invention to be necessarily limited to the specific construction illustrated and described, since such construction is only intended to be illustrative of the principles of operation and the means presently devised to carry out said principles, it being considered that the invention comprehends any changes in construction that may be permitted within the scope of the appended claims.

I claim:

1. A stretching form for fur garments and the like comprising:

(a) a standard;

(b) a body part including a shoulder portion about which a garment may be draped; and

(c) means below the body part engageable with the lower portion of said garment, said means and body part being mounted on the standard for relative adjustment toward and away from each other, at

least a portion of said means being spaced vertically downwardly from the body part in selected positions to which said means and body part are adjusted relatively to each other, said portion of said lastmentioned means being expansible independently of the body part, radially of the standard.

2. A stretching form for fur garments and the like as in claim 1, further including second means to prevent relative rotation of the body part and of said first named means about the standard.

3. A stretching form for fur garments and the like as in claim 2, wherein the second means comprises a bar extending between and engaged with the body part and the first means in laterally spaced relation to the standard, said bar being slidable in one at least of the body part and first means.

4. A stretching form for fur garments and the like as in claim 3 wherein the relatively adjustable mounting of said body part and first means comprises a threaded sleeve rotatably supported on the standard, said first means being threadedly engaged with the sleeve for movement toward and away from the body part responsive to rotation of the sleeve.

5. A fur stretching form as in claim 1, further including a front plate extending between and connected to at least one of the body part and of said means in laterally spaced, approximately parallel relation to said standard, to provide a flat backing surface for the front portion of the garment being stretched.

6. A fur stretching form as in claim 1 wherein said means comprises a generally fiat plate assembly lying in a plane normal to the length of the standard and expansible within said plane to provide said expansion radially of the standard.

7. A fur stretching form as in claim 6 wherein said plate assembly is expandable in its own plane.

8. A fur stretching form as in claim 6 wherein the plate assembly includes an inner plate means receiving and mounted for vertical adjustment upon the standard, and outer plate means mounted on the inner plate means for relative adjustment toward and away from each other in said plane.

9. A fur stretching form as in claim 8 wherein the outer plate means includes opposed C-shaped elements embracing the inner plate means and slidably adjustable thereon in a horizontal direction toward and away from the standard.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 1,153,633 9/1915 Levin 22368 1,717,477 6/1929 Ufford 22368 2,361,045 10/1944 Miller 22368 2,644,620 7/1953 Palmer 22368 2,685,391 8/1954 Thomas 22368 JORDAN FRANKLIN, Primary Examiner.

G. V. LARKIN, Assistant Examiner. 

1. A STRETCHING FORM FOR FUR GARMENT AND THE LIKE COMPRISING: (A) A STANDARD; (B) A BODY PART INCLUDING A SHOULDER PORTION ABOUT WHICH A GARMENT MAY BE DRAPED; AND (C) MEANS BELOW THE BODY PART ENGAGEABLE WITH THE LOWER PORTION OF SAID GARMENT, SAID MEANS AND BODY PART BEING MOUNTED ON THE STANDARD FOR RELATIVE ADJUSTMENT TOWARD AND AWAY FROM EACH OTHER, AT LEAST A PORTION OF SAID MEANS BEING SPACED VERTICALLY DOWNWARDLY FROM THE BODY PART IN SELECTED POSITIONS TO WHICH SAID MEANS AND BODY PART ARE ADJUSTED RELATIVELY TO EACH OTHER, SAID PORTION OF SAID LASTMENTIONED MEANS BEING EXPANSIBLE INDEPENDENTLY OF THE BODY PART, RADIALLY OF THE STANDARD. 